Digital flash cards including links to digital content

ABSTRACT

Techniques are disclosed for creating digital flash cards that include links to content from one or more digital content sources, referred to herein as a flash card mode. The mode allows a user to create a digital flash card by selecting a portion of a digital content source and performing a create command. The created flash card includes at least two virtual sides and a first side of the flash card identifies the location of the selected portion of digital content. The location may be identified, for example, by a canonical fragment identifier (CFI). Text can then be entered for a second side of the flash card. Flash cards can be shared with other users, and because the flash cards only identify locations of content within digital content sources, the mode is well-suited to handle sources including digital rights management (DRM) protection, for example.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/935,834, filed Mar. 26, 2018, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/333,931, filed Jul. 17, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No.9,927,963, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference hereinin their entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

This disclosure relates to electronic computing devices, and moreparticularly, to creating and interacting with digital flash cardsincluding links to the location of digital content.

BACKGROUND

Electronic computing devices such as tablets, eReaders, mobile phones,smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and other such devicesare commonly used for displaying digital content. The content may be,for example, an eBook, a web page, an online article or blog, images, amovie or video, a map, just to name a few types. Such devices may alsobe useful for displaying a user interface that allows a user to interactwith one or more applications running on the device. The applicationsmay allow a user to read or browse through digital content, such aselectronic books (eBooks), magazines, catalogs, or comics, for example.The computing devices may also include a touch-sensitivesurface/interface for receiving user input such as a touch screen or atrack pad (e.g., in combination with a non-touch-sensitive display). Theuser may interact with such touch-sensitive electronic computing devicesusing fingers and/or a stylus, for example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1a illustrates an example electronic computing device, configuredin accordance with one or more embodiments of the present invention.

FIGS. 1b-c illustrate example configuration screen shots of the userinterface of the computing device shown in FIG. 1a , in accordance withan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2a illustrates a block diagram of an electronic computing device,configured in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2b illustrates a block diagram of a communication system includingthe electronic computing device of FIG. 2a , configured in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 3a-j collectively illustrate an example flash card mode for anelectronic computing device, in accordance with one or more embodimentsof the present invention.

FIGS. 4a-c ′ illustrate an example flash card created using the flashcard mode, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 5a-d illustrate example screen shots showing interactions withflash card sets created using a flash card mode, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method for providing a flash card mode in anelectronic computing device, in accordance with one or more embodimentsof the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Techniques are disclosed for creating (and interacting with) digitalflash cards that include links to content from one or more digitalcontent sources, referred to herein as a flash card mode. The modeallows a user to create a digital flash card by selecting a portion of adigital content source and performing a create command. The selecteddigital content can effectively be treated as the answer portion of theflash card question-answer construct, in accordance with an embodiment.Once a flash card is created in response to selecting a portion ofdigital content and performing the create command, the user is promptedto type or otherwise enter the question portion of that construct, inaccordance with such an embodiment. The created flash card can be savedfor later reference, and includes at least two virtual sides. Forexample, one side may include the user-generated (or otherwise provided)question and the other side may identify the location of the selectedportion of content representing the answer to that question. Thelocation of the selected portion of content may be identified using acanonical fragment identifier (CFI), although other suitable contentlocation identifiers can be used, as will be appreciated in light ofthis disclosure. The cards can also be shared with other users (such asclassmates or other students taking the same course), and because theflash cards only include the location of content, the mode iswell-suited to handle content including digital rights management (DRM)protection, in accordance with an embodiment. In one such example case,a subsequent user that opens a shared flash card is prompted to buy/rentthe protected content source(s) only if that user does not already own(or otherwise have rights to use) that content source(s). In anothersuch example case, the subsequent user may be allowed to buy/rent asubset of the protected content, such as only the content specificallyused on the flash card or the block of content from which the selectedcontent was taken (e.g., only a section, chapter, etc.). In still otherscenarios, if the subsequent user already has existing rights to accessthe protected content (e.g., because the subsequent user also owns acopy of the protected content), then no prompting to buy/rent is needed.In any such cases, once it is established that the subsequent user isallowed access to the protected content, the flash card will virtuallyshow that content, in accordance with an embodiment. However, in somesuch cases, if the subsequent user has no right to access the protectedcontent and does not wish to buy/rent that content, then the flash cardwill virtually show only the location of that content (and/or an errormessage, for example), plus the user-generated question. Numerous otherconfigurations and variations will be apparent in light of thisdisclosure. For instance, the user-generated content may also be treatedas protected content that is required to be purchased, if so desired.

General Overview

Flash cards are a way of presenting information and are widely used toaid memorization and learning. A single flash card typically has twosides, each side including information, and multiple flash cards can beorganized into a set. Techniques for creating and interacting withdigital flash cards exist to simulate the creation of and interactionwith non-digital flash cards. However, such conventional techniques donot include the ability to intuitively create flash cards using contentfrom one or more already existing digital content sources, such aselectronic books (eBooks) or other electronic documents. Further, suchconventional techniques do not have solutions for addressing digitalrights management (DRM) and copyright issues that may affect the abilityto use content from those digital content sources.

Thus, and in accordance with one or more embodiments of the presentinvention, techniques are disclosed for creating (and interacting with)digital flash cards that include links to the location of portions ofdigital content from one or more digital content sources, referred tocollectively herein as a flash card mode. In an example embodiment, adigital flash card can be created by selecting a portion of an eBook andperforming a create command (e.g., selecting a create button, selectinga create context menu option, performing a create gesture, etc.). Thecreated digital flash card includes at least two virtual sides, where afirst side of the flash card includes a link to the location of theselected portion of digital content (or otherwise identifies thelocation of the selected portion). For example, in the case of an EPUBformat eBook, the location of the selected portion may be identified bya canonical fragment identifier (CFI). Further, the location of theselected portion of digital content may be identified by a single CFIincluding the range of the selected portion or by a beginning and endingCFI. Note that the CFI may identify the eBook source (e.g., using aninternational standard book number (ISBN) identifier or other suitableidentifier). In such an example embodiment, the link to the location ofthe selected portion may be created on (or otherwise included with) afirst side of the flash card. Then, the user may be prompted to type (orotherwise enter) information on a second side of the flash card. Forexample, in some embodiments, the created flash card may follow aquestion-answer construct, where the linked-to content on the first sideof the flash card represents an answer and the user-generated content onthe second side of the flash card represents a question. In someinstances, the user may be able to include additional links to contenton a desired side of the created flash card, as will be apparent inlight of this disclosure.

In some embodiments, one or more flash cards can be created using theflash card mode to form a flash card set. Organizing flash cards into aflash card set may facilitate interacting with the group of flash cards.For example, the flash card mode may be configured to provision a flashcard panel accessible from an application (such as an eBook readerapplication) that allows a user to interact with created flash cards, aswill be apparent in light of this disclosure. In some embodiments, flashcards or flash card sets can be shared with or sold to others, orinteracted with in other ways (e.g., edited, moved, organized, etc.).Note that a single flash card or a single flash card set may includelinks to content in multiple digital content sources, such as tomultiple eBooks, for example.

As will be apparent in light of this disclosure, the flash card mode asvariously described herein is particularly well-suited for use withdigital content sources including digital rights management (DRM)technology, copyright protection, or other restrictions on use ofcontent from the digital content sources, because flash cards createdusing the flash card mode do not include the actual content from thosedigital content sources. Instead, flash cards created using the flashcard mode include links to the location of content from those sources,and therefore, do not include content having DRM or copyrightrestrictions, or any other restrictions on the use, sharing, selling,etc. of such content. For example, if a user desires to buy a flash cardset, the flash card mode may be configured, in some embodiments, toverify whether the user has free access to all of the sources linked-toby the flash card set. Having free access to a digital content sourcemay include owning the source or owning a license to the source, havinglimited time/scope accessibility to the source (e.g., renting or loaningthe source through a virtual library, only having access to the book forone school semester, etc.), or the source being DRM-free, just to name afew examples. If the user has free access to all of the sources, thenthe user may be able to access the flash card set content for free orfor only the price of the flash card set itself (e.g., in cases wherethe flash card set is sold). However, in cases where the user does nothave free access to one or more of the sources linked-to by the flashcard set, the flash card mode may be configured, in some embodiments, torequire the user to purchase/rent those sources or to just purchase/rentthe linked-to content in the flash card set.

In some embodiments, the flash card mode may be configured at a globallevel (e.g., based on the UI settings of the device) and/or at anapplication level (e.g., based on the specific application being used tointeract with the digital content). For example, the mode may beconfigured to be enabled for some applications and disabled for others.To this end, one or more of the mode features may be user-configurable,hard-coded, or some combination thereof (e.g., where some aspects areuser-configurable and others are hard-coded), as will be apparent inlight of this disclosure. Further, the flash card mode may be includedinitially with the UI (or operating system) of an electronic computingdevice or be included in a separate program/service/applicationconfigured to interface with the UI of such a device to incorporate thefunctionality of the mode as variously described herein. In someembodiments, the mode may come in the form of a computer program product(one or more non-transient computer readable mediums) that includes aplurality of instructions non-transiently encoded thereon, that, whenexecuted by one or more processors, cause a process to be carried outthat includes the functionality of the flash card mode as variouslydescribed herein.

As will be apparent in light of this disclosure, the flash card mode maybe used on any suitable electronic computing device, such as varioussmartphones, tablets, and eReaders. In such devices including atouch-sensitive UI, user input may be referred to as contact or usercontact for ease of reference. However, direct and/or proximate contact(e.g., hovering within a few centimeters of the touch-sensitive surface)may be used to provide user input to the device, depending on thespecific touch-sensitive surface/interface being used. In other words,in some embodiments, a user need not even physically touch the device orits touch-sensitive surface/interface to provide input. Also note thatthe user contact (whether direct or proximate) may be provided by theuser's hand (or another suitable body part) or a stylus (or some othersuitable implement), for example. In some embodiments, user input may beprovided in various other ways, such as through voice commands orsounds, or through any other suitable method. Numerous variations andconfigurations will be apparent in light of this disclosure.

Computing Device and Configuration Examples

FIG. 1a illustrates an example electronic computing device, configuredin accordance with one or more embodiments of the present invention. Thedevice could be, for example, a tablet such as the NOOK® tablet byBARNES & NOBLE®. In a more general sense, the device may be anycomputing device capable of displaying digital content, such as a smartphone, eReader, tablet computer, laptop, or desktop computer, forexample. In some instances, the computing device may be touch-sensitiveand include a touch screen display or a non-touch-sensitive displayscreen that can be used in conjunction with a touch-sensitivesurface/interface, such as a track pad. As will be appreciated in lightof this disclosure, the present disclosure is not intended to be limitedto any particular kind or type of computing device. For ease ofdescription, an example computing device is provided herein with touchscreen technology.

As can be seen with the example embodiment shown in FIG. 1a , the devicecomprises a housing/frame that includes a number of hardware featuressuch as a power button and a press-button (sometimes called a homebutton herein). A touch screen based user interface (UI) is alsoprovided (although a computing device running the flash card mode asvariously described herein need not be touch-sensitive), which in thisexample embodiment includes a quick navigation menu having six maincategories to choose from (Home, Library, Shop, Search, Light, andSettings) and a status bar that includes a number of icons (anight-light icon, a wireless network icon, and a book icon), a batteryindicator, and a clock. Other embodiments may have fewer or additionalsuch UI touch screen controls and features, or different UI touch screencontrols and features altogether, depending on the target application ofthe device. Any such general UI touch or non-touch controls and featurescan be implemented using any suitable conventional or custom technology,as will be appreciated.

Although the computing device shown in FIG. 1a uses a touch screendisplay, other touch-sensitive embodiments may include a non-touchscreen and a touch-sensitive surface such as a track pad, or atouch-sensitive housing configured with one or more acoustic sensors,etc. As previously described, the computing device need not betouch-sensitive and may receive input from physical buttons, directionalpads, joysticks, mouse pointing devices, and physical keyboards, just toname a few other input device examples. Continuing with the examplecomputing device shown in FIG. 1a , the power button can be used to turnthe device on and off, and may be used in conjunction with a touch-basedUI control feature that allows the user to confirm a given powertransition action request (e.g., such as a slide bar or tap pointgraphic to turn power off). In this example device, the home button is aphysical press-button that can be used to display the device's homescreen when the device is awake and in use. Note that the buttons asvariously described herein may be physical, virtual, or some combinationthereof, depending upon the embodiment. The home button (or otherbuttons) may also be used in conjunction with the flash card mode asdisclosed herein to, for example, exit the flash card mode or cancel aflash card mode action. Numerous other configurations and variationswill be apparent in light of this disclosure, and the present disclosureis not intended to be limited to any particular set of control featuresor device form factor.

Continuing from FIG. 1a , the user can access a configuration sub-menu,such as the Flash Card Mode configuration sub-menu shown in FIG. 1c , bytapping or otherwise selecting the Settings option in the quicknavigation menu, which causes the device in this embodiment to displaythe general sub-menu shown in FIG. 1b . From this general sub-menu theuser can select any one of a number of options, including one designatedUser Interface (UI) in this specific example case. Selecting thissub-menu item (with, for example, an appropriately placed screen tap)may cause the configuration sub-menu of FIG. 1c to be displayed, inaccordance with an embodiment. In other example embodiments, selectingthe User Interface (UI) option may present the user with a number ofadditional sub-options, one of which may include an eReader option,which may then be selected by the user so as to cause the configurationsub-menu of FIG. 1c to be displayed. Any number of such menu schemes andnested hierarchies can be used, as will be appreciated in light of thisdisclosure. In other embodiments, the flash card mode as describedherein may be hard-coded such that no configuration is needed orotherwise permitted. The degree of hard-coding versususer-configurability can vary from one embodiment to the next, and thepresent disclosure is not intended to be limited to any particularconfiguration scheme of any kind, as will be apparent in light of thisdisclosure.

As will be appreciated, the various UI control features and sub-menusdisplayed to the user are implemented as UI touch screen controls inthis example embodiment. Such UI touch screen controls can be programmedor otherwise configured using any number of conventional or customtechnologies. In general, the touch screen translates one or moretouches (whether direct or proximate and whether made by a user's hand,a stylus, or some other suitable implement) in a particular location(s)into an electrical signal, which is then received and processed by theunderlying operating system (OS), system software, and circuitry(processor, etc.) of the computing device. In some instances, note thatthe user need not actually physically touch the touch-sensitivesurface/interface to provide user input (e.g., when the touch-sensitivesurface/interface recognizes hovering input). In embodiments where thecomputing device is not-touch-sensitive, input may be provided using amouse, joystick, or directional pad, and one or more buttons, forexample, to provide input similar to touching a touch screen. In someembodiments, the UI may allow other user interactions, such asvoice-commands. Additional example details of the underlying OS andcircuitry in accordance with some embodiments will be discussed in turnwith reference to FIG. 2a . As previously explained, in some cases, theflash card mode as described herein may be automatically configured bythe specific UI or application being used. In these instances, the modeneed not be user-configurable (e.g., if the mode is hard-coded or areotherwise automatically configured).

Continuing with FIG. 1b , once the Settings sub-menu is displayed, theuser can then select the User Interface (UI) option. In response to sucha selection, the Flash Card Mode configuration sub-menu shown in FIG. 1ccan be provided to the user. In this example case, the configurationsub-menu includes a UI check box that when checked or otherwise selectedby the user, effectively enables the mode (shown in the Enabled state);unchecking the box disables the mode. Other embodiments may have theflash card mode always enabled, while in other embodiments the mode maybe enabled or disengaged by a physical switch or button, or by auniquely identifiable gesture or screen contact, for example.

As can be seen in the example shown in FIG. 1c , the sub-menu includes aleft section that allows a user to configure a number of options for theflash card mode and a right section that allows a user to enable/disablethe flash card mode for various applications. The left section in thisexample of the sub-menu includes a configuration option that allows auser to select the Sides Per Flash Card using the correspondingdrop-down menu. As shown, the number of virtual sides per flash card isset as Two Sides; however, the flash card mode may be configured toallow digital flash cards having three or more virtual sides, as will beapparent in light of this disclosure. The next configuration optionallows the user to select the Save Directory where generated digitalflash cards are saved/stored. In this example embodiment, the savedirectory may be set to a default location and then user may be able toset it to a different location, if desired. In other embodiments, thesave directory may be non-configurable or hard-coded. Additionalselectable buttons are shown that allow the user to ConfigureColors/Fonts related to generated digital flash cards and to ConfigureFlash Card Panel options, in this example embodiment. The configurationoptions presented in this example embodiment are shown for illustrativepurposes (e.g., to illustrate that one or more aspects of the flash cardmode may be user-configurable) and the flash card mode may includeadditional and/or other customizable features or aspects, as will beapparent in light of this disclosure.

The right side of the settings sub-menu screen shot shown in FIG. 1cincludes an Applications section that allows a user to individuallyenable the flash card mode for specific applications, in this exampleembodiment. Such a configuration feature may be helpful, for instance,in a tablet or laptop or other multifunction computing device that canexecute different applications (as opposed to a computing device that ismore or less dedicated to a particular application). As previouslyexplained, in some embodiments, the flash card mode may be applicationspecific or configured at an application level. As can be seen in theexample screen shot shown in FIG. 1c , the mode is enabled for the eBookReader, Document Viewer, and SlideShow Viewer applications. Forcompleteness of description, the mode is disabled for the PDF Viewerapplication, in this example case. The settings screen also includes anAdditional Applications button that can be selected, in this exampleembodiment, to allow a user to enable/disable the flash card mode forother applications. In some embodiments, the flash card mode may belater enabled for a particular application from this settings screen orenabled from within a specific application.

In some embodiments, the flash card may be related or tied to one ormore specific applications of the device's UI (or operating system),such that the mode is only available, active, or running when such anapplication is available, active, or running. For example, the mode mayonly be available, active, or running when an eBook reader applicationis active and/or displayed, which may save a computing device's memoryand/or power consumption. Any number of applications or device functionsmay benefit from the flash card mode as variously provided herein,whether user-configurable or not, and the present disclosure is notintended to be limited to any particular application or set ofapplications.

As can be further seen, a back button UI control feature may beprovisioned on the touch screen for any of the menus provided, so thatthe user can go back to the previous menu, if so desired. Note thatconfiguration settings provided by the user can be saved automatically(e.g., user input is saved as selections are made or otherwiseprovided). Alternatively, a save button or other such UI feature can beprovisioned, which the user can engage as desired. Again, while FIGS. 1band 1c show user configurability, other embodiments may not allow forany such configuration, wherein the various features provided arehard-coded or otherwise provisioned by default. The degree ofhard-coding versus user-configurability can vary from one embodiment tothe next, and the claimed invention is not intended to be limited to anyparticular configuration scheme of any kind.

Architecture

FIG. 2a illustrates a block diagram of a computing device configured inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention. As can be seen,this example device includes a processor, memory (e.g., RAM and/or ROMfor processor workspace and storage), additional storage/memory (e.g.,for content), a communications module, a touch screen, and an audiomodule. A communications bus and interconnect is also provided to allowinter-device communication. Other typical componentry and functionalitynot reflected in the block diagram will be apparent (e.g., battery,co-processor, etc.). Further note that although a touch screen displayis provided, other touch-sensitive embodiments may include a non-touchscreen and a touch-sensitive surface such as a track pad, or atouch-sensitive housing configured with one or more acoustic sensors,etc. In this manner, a non-touch-sensitive computing device can become atouch-sensitive computing device by adding an interfacingtouch-sensitive component. However, as previously explained, someembodiments may be non-touch-sensitive. The principles provided hereinequally apply to any such computing device. For ease of description,examples are provided with touch screen technology.

The touch-sensitive surface (touch-sensitive display or touch screen, inthis example) can be any device that is configured with user inputdetecting technologies, whether capacitive, resistive, acoustic, activeor passive stylus, and/or other input detecting technology. The screendisplay can be layered above input sensors, such as a capacitive sensorgrid for passive touch-based input (e.g., with a finger or passivestylus in the case of a so-called in-plane switching (IPS) panel), or anelectro-magnetic resonance (EMR) sensor grid (e.g., for sensing aresonant circuit of the stylus). In some embodiments, the touch screendisplay can be configured with a purely capacitive sensor, while inother embodiments the touch screen display may be configured to providea hybrid mode that allows for both capacitive input and active stylusinput. In any such embodiments, a touch screen controller may beconfigured to selectively scan the touch screen display and/orselectively report contacts detected directly on or otherwisesufficiently proximate to (e.g., within a few centimeters) the touchscreen display. The proximate contact may include, for example, hoveringinput used to cause location specific input as though direct contactwere being provided on a touch-sensitive surface (such as a touchscreen). Numerous touch screen display configurations can be implementedusing any number of known or proprietary screen based input detectingtechnology.

Continuing with the example embodiment shown in FIG. 2a , the memoryincludes a number of modules stored therein that can be accessed andexecuted by the processor (and/or a co-processor). The modules includean operating system (OS), a user interface (UI), and a powerconservation routine (Power). The modules can be implemented, forexample, in any suitable programming language (e.g., C, C++, objectiveC, JavaScript, custom or proprietary instruction sets, etc.), andencoded on a machine readable medium, that when executed by theprocessor (and/or co-processors), carries out the functionality of thedevice, including the flash card mode as variously described herein. Thecomputer readable medium may be, for example, a hard drive, compactdisk, memory stick, server, or any suitable non-transitorycomputer/computing device memory that includes executable instructions,or a plurality or combination of such memories. Other embodiments can beimplemented, for instance, with gate-level logic or anapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or chip set or other suchpurpose built logic, or a microcontroller having input/output capability(e.g., inputs for receiving user inputs and outputs for directing othercomponents) and a number of embedded routines for carrying out thedevice functionality. In short, the functional modules can beimplemented in hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.

The processor can be any suitable processor (e.g., Texas InstrumentsOMAP4, dual-core ARM Cortex-A9, 1.5 GHz), and may include one or moreco-processors or controllers to assist in device control. In thisexample case, the processor receives input from the user, includinginput from or otherwise derived from the power button, home button, andtouch-sensitive surface. In other embodiments, the processor may beconfigured to receive input from other input devices, such as from amouse or keyboard, for example, to determine if such devices are beingused to provide input. The processor can also have a direct connectionto a battery so that it can perform base level tasks even during sleepor low power modes. The memory (e.g., for processor workspace andexecutable file storage) can be any suitable type of memory and size(e.g., 256 or 512 Mbytes SDRAM), and in other embodiments may beimplemented with non-volatile memory or a combination of non-volatileand volatile memory technologies. The storage (e.g., for storingconsumable content and user files) can also be implemented with anysuitable memory and size (e.g., 2 GBytes of flash memory).

The display can be implemented, for example, with a 7 to 9 inch1920×1280 IPS LCD touchscreen touch screen, or any other suitabledisplay and touch-sensitive interface technology. The communicationsmodule can be, for instance, any suitable 802.11 b/g/n WLAN chip or chipset, which allows for connection to a local network so that content canbe downloaded to the device from a remote location (e.g., contentprovider, etc., depending on the application of the display device). Insome specific example embodiments, the device housing or frame thatcontains all the various componentry measures about 7″ to 9″ high byabout 5″ to 6″ wide by about 0.5″ thick, and weighs about 7 to 8 ounces.Any number of suitable form factors can be used, depending on the targetapplication (e.g., laptop, smart phone, etc.). The device may, forexample, smaller for smart phone and eReader applications and larger fortablet computer applications.

The operating system (OS) module can be implemented with any suitableOS, but in some example embodiments is implemented with GOOGLE ANDROIDOS or LINUX OS or MICROSOFT OS or APPLE OS. The power management (Power)module can be configured as typically done, such as to automaticallytransition the device to a low power consumption or sleep mode after aperiod of non-use. A wake-up from that sleep mode can be achieved, forexample, by a physical button press and/or a touch screen swipe or otheraction. The audio module can be configured, for example, to speak orotherwise aurally present a selected eBook or other textual content. Insome example cases, if additional space is desired, for example, tostore digital books or other content and media, storage can be expandedvia a microSD card or other suitable memory expansion technology (e.g.,32 GBytes, or higher). The UI module can be, for example, based on touchscreen technology, and the various example screen shots and exampleuse-cases shown in FIGS. 1a-c, 3a-j, 4a-c, and 5a-d , in conjunctionwith the methodology demonstrated in FIG. 6, which will be discussed inturn.

Client-Server System

FIG. 2b illustrates a block diagram of a communication system includingthe electronic computing device of FIG. 2a configured in accordance withan embodiment of the present invention. As can be seen, the systemgenerally includes an electronic computing device that is capable ofcommunicating with a server via a network/cloud. In this exampleembodiment, the computing device may be, for example, an eReader, asmart phone, a laptop, a tablet computer, a desktop computer, or anyother suitable computing device. The network/cloud may be a publicand/or private network, such as a private local area network operativelycoupled to a wide area network such as the Internet. In this exampleembodiment, the server may be programmed or otherwise configured toreceive content requests from a user via the computing device and torespond to those requests by providing the user with requested orotherwise recommended content. In some such embodiments, the server maybe configured to remotely provision the flash card mode as variouslyprovided herein to the computing device (e.g., via JavaScript or otherbrowser based technology). In other embodiments, portions of themethodology may be executed on the server and other portions of themethodology may be executed on the device. Numerousserver-side/client-side execution schemes can be implemented tofacilitate the flash card mode as disclosed herein in accordance withone or more embodiments, as will be apparent in light of thisdisclosure.

Flash Card Mode Examples

FIGS. 3a-j collectively illustrate an example flash card mode for anelectronic computing device, in accordance with one or more embodimentsof the present invention. As can be seen in FIG. 3a , the electroniccomputing device is shown having a housing/frame that includes a touchscreen for displaying content and allowing user input (whether direct orproximate). The digital content that the touch screen in FIG. 3a isdisplaying is a page of an eBook, and more specifically, page 55 of theeBook “U.S. History.” The eBook may be displayed or otherwise presentedusing an eReader application, or some other suitable application orprogram. The flash card mode will be primarily discussed herein withreference to creating flash cards from one or more eBooks for ease ofdescription; however, the flash card mode is not intended to be solimited. For example, the flash card mode may be used with otherelectronic documents, electronic presentations, websites, or any othersuitable digital content sources. Although the flash card mode is beingillustrated in FIGS. 3a-j on a touch-sensitive device having a touchscreen, other touch-sensitive devices may include a non-touch displayscreen that can be used in conjunction with a touch-sensitivesurface/interface, such as a track pad, as previously described. As wasalso previously described, the flash card mode may be used on anon-touch-sensitive computing device; however, a touch-sensitivecomputing device is used herein for ease of description.

Continuing with the screen shot shown in FIG. 3a , a graphic isdisplayed at the bottom of the screen to indicate that the flash cardmode has been invoked. The flash card mode may be invoked using thegraphic shown (e.g., by tapping the gesture and selecting to invoke theflash card mode, swiping the gesture in a particular manner, etc.) or inanother suitable manner (e.g., through a list of menu options, throughuse of a specific gesture, through selection of a particular button orbutton sequence, etc.). In some embodiments, the flash card mode mayhave to be enabled prior to invoking the mode (e.g., as was discussedwith reference to FIG. 1c ). FIG. 3b shows a user making contact (usinga finger on a hand of the user) or touching the touch screen to initiatea selection of a portion of the displayed eBook page. FIG. 3c shows theuser dragging the contact made in FIG. 3b to select text. The selectedtext, in this example embodiment, is highlighted to indicate the portionthat has been selected to the user; however, the selection may beindicated in any other suitable manner (e.g., underlining or italicizingthe selected text, making the selected text bold, etc.). Although theflash card mode is being illustrated through the selection of text, themode need not be so limited. For example, the mode may allow a user toalso (or alternatively) select images, videos, audio files, or any othersuitable portion of already created digital content.

FIG. 3d shows the user releasing the drag performed in FIG. 3c to causea selection panel associated with the selected text to be presented, inthis example embodiment. The selection panel includes a selection handleto allow the user to move the end location of the selected text, aconfirm selection button, and a cancel selection button, each of whichare indicated in FIG. 3d . The selection handle, in this exampleembodiment, can move the end location of the selected text by initiatinga drag gesture on the handle and releasing the drag gesture such thatthe end of the selection is at the desired location. There is also aselection handle at the beginning of the text to allow the user to movethe beginning location of the selected text in a similar manner. Theconfirm selection button will be discussed in more detail herein. Thecancel selection button allows a user to cancel or otherwise unselectthe selection. In some embodiments, the selection may also be canceledor otherwise unselected by tapping away from the selection or selectionoptions (e.g., selection handles, confirm/cancel selection buttons,etc.).

FIG. 3e shows the user selecting the confirm selection button to createa digital flash card, in this example embodiment. In other words, inthis example embodiment, the confirm selection button is a flash cardcreate command, that is used to create a digital flash card after aportion of already existing digital content has been selected (e.g., aswas done in FIGS. 3c-d ). FIG. 3f shows the flash card after the createcommand was performed in FIG. 3e to create the flash card (Flash Card2), in this example embodiment. As can be seen in FIG. 3f , a link tothe location of the selected portion of digital content was created onSide One of the digital flash card. As can also be seen in FIG. 3f , avirtual keyboard has been displayed (or otherwise presented) to allowthe user to edit the contents of the flash card, as will be discussed inmore detail herein. The location of the selected portion of digitalcontent is identified by a canonical fragment identifier (CFI) on SideOne and the actual content that the CFI represents (“Apr. 12, 1861”) isshown in braces to, for example, aid the user when completing the flashcard, in this example embodiment. However, in other embodiments, onlythe link or only the actual content may be shown. As can be seen in thisexample embodiment, the CFI created on Side One identifies the eBookincluding the linked-to content (ushistory.epub). Further, only one CFIwas created to identify the location of the selected portion of content,which may be achieved by including a range of content that identifiesthe location of the selected portion or by including a beginning andending location of the selected portion. In other embodiments, separateCFIs may be created to identify the location of the beginning and endinglocations of the selected portion of digital content (e.g., where theselected portion spans a large area). The location of the selectedportion of digital content may be linked-to (or otherwise identified) inany suitable manner, and in some embodiments, the identification formatmay depend upon the digital content source being used. For example, thebeginning and ending locations may be identified using a volume,chapter, page, image, video, paragraph, sentence, word, and/orcharacter, or any other suitable component of the digital contentsource, or combination thereof.

Continuing with FIG. 3f , the flash card mode, in this exampleembodiment, presents options for the user to edit the created flashcard. The first option is a Save Flash Card option that allows the userto save the flash card after editing has been completed. The next optionis a Select Text option that allows a user to select additional text inthe original digital content (the U.S. History eBook, in this examplecase). Such an option may include a user choosing an insertion point inthe created flash card (Flash Card 2, in this example case), and thenselecting the additional content (e.g., using the process shown in FIGS.3b-3e ) to create a link to that content which is inserted at thepreviously chosen insertion point. The insertion point may be chosen byselecting text within the flash card editor box (e.g., to replace thattext with the linked content) or placing the cursor at the desiredlocation (e.g., to insert the linked content at that location). In thismanner, a single flash card side could have multiple portions oflinked-to content from one or more digital content sources. Further, twoor more virtual sides of a flash card could include linked-to content.The next option is a Select Color option that may allow the user toselect the color of the flash card content (e.g., text color), the colorof a flash card side, and/or the color of the entire flash card, forexample. The next option in this example embodiment is a Delete FlashCard option that can be selected to delete the created flash card. Othersuitable options may be available after the flash card has been createdand the flash card mode is not intended to be limited to any particularflash card option(s).

In the example embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3a-f , the creation of aflash card included a three-part process—invoking the flash card mode(e.g., as described with reference to FIG. 3a ), selecting content(e.g., as described with reference to FIGS. 3b-c ), and then performinga create command (e.g., as described with reference to FIG. 3e ).Further, as described with reference to FIG. 3e , the create commandincluded selecting the confirm selection button. In other embodiments,the flash card mode may be configured to create a flash card with only atwo-part process. In some such embodiments, a create command may beperformed and then a portion of digital content may be selected tocreate a flash card including a link to the location of the portion ofdigital content. For example, invoking the flash card mode (e.g., asshown in FIG. 3a and described herein) may simultaneously perform thecreate command. In such an example, subsequently selecting a portion ofdigital content (e.g., as shown in FIGS. 3b-c and described herein) maythen create a digital flash card including a link to the location of theportion of digital content. Therefore, in some embodiments, the createcommand may be performed prior to selecting the portion of digitalcontent to create a digital flash card using the flash card mode.

In some embodiments, the flash card mode may be configured to provisiona flash card create command within a context menu (or other suitablemenu) accessible after performing an interaction (e.g., a right click, adouble tap, a long press, etc.) with selected content. In such anembodiment, for example, the user can select the content that will beincluded in the flash card (in the form of a link to the location of thecontent), perform the interaction with the selected content to bring upthe context menu, and then select the flash card create command contextmenu option (to create the flash card). The flash card create commandsdescribed herein are provided for illustrative purposes and are notintended to limit the flash card mode to the specific example provided.The mode may be configured with one or more of the flash card createcommands described herein and/or any other suitable flash card createcommands (whether the commands are performed prior to content beingselected, while content is being selected, and/or after content has beenselected).

FIG. 3g shows the flash card editor after the flash card has beencreated and after text has been entered for Side Two of the flash card,in this example embodiment. The text may have been entered using thevirtual keyboard or any other suitable input component. As can be seen,a cursor is shown in the editor box to indicate where text will beentered. In this example embodiment, the text entered (“On what date didthe American Civil War begin?”) is a question created by the user, andthe linked-to portion of content (“Apr. 12, 1861”) is the answer. Notethat the flash card mode may be used to create any combination ofcontent, and the question-answer construct is provided in this exampleembodiment for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit thepresent disclosure. Further note that the digital flash card created inthis example embodiment only has two virtual sides, but in otherembodiments, the digital flash card may have three or more virtualsides. In some embodiments, the flash card mode may be configured toallow the user to input additional links to portions of the originalcontent into the digital flash card (e.g., using the Select Text option,as previously described). In some embodiments, the linked-to content(e.g., the linked-to content shown in brackets on Side One) may beeditable by the user. For example, in some such embodiments, the usermay be able to edit the content by selecting the link representing thecontent. In such an example, selecting the link may take the user backto a screen such as is shown in FIG. 3d , where the user can change theselected content.

FIG. 3h shows the user saving the created flash card using the SaveFlash Card option, in this example embodiment. In some embodiments, theflash card may be manually saved in another suitable manner (e.g.,selecting an enter button, performing a gesture, etc.). In someembodiments, the flash card may be saved automatically. For example,returning to the original digital content (e.g., the U.S. History eBookin this example case) may save the flash card as created/edited in someembodiments. FIG. 3i shows an example flash card panel after the createdflash card has been saved, in this example embodiment. As can be seen,the flash card panel includes U.S. History Set 1, which includes FlashCard 1 and Flash Card 2 (which was created in the screen shots shown inFIGS. 3a-h ). In this example embodiment, the flash cards can be viewed,selected, edited, or otherwise interacted with via the flash card panel.For example, the user may be able to bring up a context menu withmultiple options (e.g., open, edit, share, etc.) in response to aninteraction with one or more flash cards (e.g., a right click, a doubletap, a long press, etc.). Further, in this example embodiment, the flashcard mode is configured to organize digital flash cards into flash cardsets; however, that need not be the case in all configurations. Flashcard sets will be discussed in more detail herein, such as withreference to FIGS. 5a -d.

FIG. 3j shows a user selecting a digital flash card (Flash Card 2) froma flash card set (U.S. History Set 1). Selection of the flash card inthis example embodiment causes the flash card to be displayed (orotherwise presented). FIGS. 4a-c illustrate an example flash cardcreated using the flash card mode, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present disclosure. As can be seen in FIG. 4a , the flash card isdisplayed (e.g., in response to the input provided in FIG. 3j ). Morespecifically, Side Two of Flash Card 2 is displayed, and as previouslydescribed, the user-generated question on that side of the flash card isshown. FIG. 4b shows the user swiping to reveal or display (or otherwisepresent) Side One of Flash Card 2, in this example embodiment. Note thatalthough revealing/displaying another side of the flash card is achievedby swiping the flash card, the present disclosure is not intended to beso limited. Therefore, any suitable input or action can be used todisplay (or otherwise present) another side of the flash card. FIG. 4cshows the result of the swipe performed in FIG. 4b , which is Side Oneof Flash Card 2. As can be seen, Side One of Flash Card 2 includes thelinked-to portion of content (“Apr. 12, 1861”) from the U.S. HistoryeBook, which is also the answer to the user-generated question on SideTwo of the flash card. Alternatively, if the user does not have freeaccess to the U.S. History eBook, only the link to the location of thecontent may be displayed, such as is shown in FIG. 4c ′, and the usermay be prompted to buy/rent the linked-to content in the flash card set(e.g., by selecting the buy/rent button), such as the “Apr. 12, 1861”answer and any other linked-to content, or to buy/rent the digitalcontent source (the U.S. History eBook, in this example case), as willbe discussed in more detail below.

FIGS. 5a-d illustrate example screen shots showing interactions withflash card sets created using a flash card mode, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention. As can be seen in FIG. 5a , anelectronic computing device is shown having a housing/frame thatincludes a touch screen for displaying content and allowing user input(e.g., as previously described with reference to FIG. 3a ). As can alsobe seen, a flash card set browser is displayed showing four flash cardsets—U.S. History Set 1, Math Set 1, Spanish Set 1, and Spanish Set 2.Additional flash card sets may be accessed by scrolling down the screenusing the scroll bar, in this example embodiment. Upon the creation of aflash card set (which may include one or more flash cards created usingthe flash card mode as variously described herein), the user may beprompted to name the set and/or a name may be automatically assigned tothe set based on, for example, the original content linked-to by theflash cards in the set. For example, FIG. 3i shows Flash Cards 1 and 2being a part of U.S. History Set 1. Therefore, the name of the flashcard set, U.S. History Set 1, may have been manually entered by the useror automatically assigned based on the flash cards in the set includingcontent from the U.S. History eBook.

Continuing with the screen shot shown in FIG. 5a , the flash card setbrowser may allow users to interact with the flash card sets in variousways, as will be discussed herein (e.g., with reference to FIG. 5b ).The flash card set browser may include local flash card sets (e.g.,flash card sets created by the user, downloaded by the user, etc.),flash card sets that are available from a distribution platform (e.g.,GOOGLE PLAY, APPLE APP STORE, etc.), and/or flash card sets from anyother suitable source, as will be apparent in light of this disclosure.The flash card sets may include linked-to content from any number ofdigital content sources and may also include user-generated content(UGC) from any number of users.

FIG. 5b shows the user performing an interaction (a press and hold, inthis example case) on U.S. History Set 1 to bring up a context menu withmultiple options. The options include being able to open the flash cardset, as will be discussed in more detail with reference to FIGS. 5c-d .The options also include being able to share the flash card set, forexample, via email, Bluetooth, near field communication (NFC), a cloudservice, and/or any other suitable application or technique. In someembodiments, the flash card mode may be configured with a feature thatallows a user sharing one or more flash card sets to see whetherpotential recipients have free access to the content sources linked-toby the flash card set(s). The options also include being able to rename,copy, cut, and delete the flash card set, all of which are commonlyknown functions. For completeness of description, the flash card modemay be configured, in this example embodiment, to perform a defaultinteraction in response to a tap on the flash card set, such as openingthe flash card set. The available options described in this exampleembodiment for interacting with flash card sets are provided forillustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 5c shows the user selecting the open option from the context menuof FIG. 5b , to open U.S. History Set 1, in this example screen shot.FIG. 5d shows an example screen shot of a prompt related to the openselection performed in FIG. 5c . The prompt includes information basedon the flash card set selected to be opened and also includes multipleoptions. The prompt information in this example screen shot explains tothe user that U.S. History Set 1 includes links to content from twocontent sources—U.S. History eBook and U.S. History Supplement. Theprompt further explains that the user does not have free access to theU.S. History eBook content source (and therefore has free access to theU.S. History Supplement content source). Whether the user has freeaccess to one or more content sources may be determined using anysuitable techniques, such as by checking the user's content licenses todetermine whether the user owns or has free access to the source, bychecking online or in the cloud to determine if the user can freelyaccess the source (e.g., via a virtual/online library, aschool/organization database, etc.), or by any other suitable techniqueas will be apparent in light of this disclosure.

Continuing with the example screen shot shown in FIG. 5d , the promptincludes multiple options that the user can select. The first is anoption to buy or rent the U.S. History eBook content source. Selectionof such an option may, for example, take the user to a virtual store toallow the user to purchase or rent a digital copy of the U.S. HistoryeBook. The next option allows the user to buy or rent only the linked-tocontent from the U.S. History eBook. Selection of such an option may,for example, allow a user to access all of content linked-to in flashcard set U.S. History Set 1, but not allow the user to access the restof the U.S. History eBook. Such an option may also allow the user toaccess all of the content in the flash card set at a lower price (e.g.,as compared to buying/renting the entirety of the U.S. History eBook).When the flash card mode includes such an option, after the userpurchases/rents only the linked-to content from one or more sources, theuser may be able to purchase/rent the entirety of the U.S. History eBookat a discounted rate, in some embodiments. The next option allows theuser to only use the freely accessible flash cards from U.S. HistorySet 1. Selection of such an option may, for example, open only a subsetof flash cards that do not include linked-to content from the U.S.History eBook source, or it may open all of the flash cards in the set,but not retrieve the linked-to content in the U.S. History eBook (andthereby display only the links or location identifiers, such as is shownin FIG. 4c ′, for example). The next option allows the user to previewU.S. History Set 1. Selection of such an option may, for example, allowthe user to access/view one or more sides of a subset of the flash cardsin U.S. History Set 1.

In some embodiments, flash card sets may be sold by the creator of theset to other users. In some such embodiments, those who purchase theflash card set may be paying a fee to use the premade set itself and mayadditionally have to pay to access the linked-to content (e.g., asvariously described herein). In this manner, any copyright or DRM issuesassociated with the linked-to content sources can be circumvented. Asmay be appreciated, the example primarily used herein for the linked-tocontent (“Apr. 12, 1861”) is a factual date and thus likely would not besubject to copyright protection (and may not be subject to DRMprotection). To this end, it will be further appreciated that thisexample content was merely selected for ease of description and is notintended to imply or otherwise expand or limit the types of content thatmay be protectable using the various flashcard techniques providedherein. As will be further appreciated, there are virtually an unlimitednumber of instances where selected portions of digital content sourcesmay be subject to copyright protection (and/or DRM protection), and thetechniques provided herein can be used with any such instances,regardless of whether the content being used to make the flashcard isprotectable or not. When flash cards are opened, used, viewed, bought,downloaded, etc., the flash card mode may be configured to pre-retrievethe linked-to content, retrieve the linked-to content whilesimultaneously viewing the flash card including such linked-to content,or perform any other suitable technique for retrieving the actualcontent based on the configuration of the flash card mode. As previouslydescribed, the content may not be able to be retrieved unless the userhas free access to the digital content sources containing the linked-toportions of content. Numerous variations and configurations, and optionsand features will be apparent in light of the present disclosure.

Methodology

FIG. 6 illustrates a method for providing a flash card mode in anelectronic computing device, in accordance with one or more embodimentsof the present invention. The example methodology may be implemented,for instance, by the UI module of the example electronic computingdevice shown in FIG. 2a , or the example electronic computing deviceshown in FIG. 2b (e.g., with the UI provisioned to the client by theserver). To this end, the UI may be implemented in software, hardware,firmware, or any suitable combination thereof, as will be appreciated inlight of this disclosure. In computing devices including a touch screenor other touch-sensitive interface, the computing device may be able todetect contact, whether direct or proximate (e.g., via hovering input),which can be used in various ways to implement UI functionality,including selecting digital content, performing a create command, orother input as variously described herein.

In the example case illustrated in FIG. 5 the method starts bydetermining 101 if digital content is being presented/displayed. Thedigital content may include an electronic book (eBook), magazine,document, etc. and the digital content may be presented/displayed usingany appropriate application or program, such as an eBook readerapplication, a document viewer, a pdf viewer, a slideshow viewer, or anyother suitable application or program. If digital content is not beingdisplayed (or otherwise presented), the method continues to review untilsuch content is displayed. Once digital content is being displayed, themethod continues by determining 102 if the flash card mode is enabled.As described herein, the flash card mode may be enabled via a settingsmenu (such as is shown in FIG. 1c ) or via the application itself, forexample. In some embodiments, the flash card mode may be tied to one ormore applications capable of presenting/displaying digital content andthe tool may not be available/enabled until one such application isrunning, active, and/or displayed (which may result in a conservation ofdevice power and/or memory).

If the mode is not enabled, then the method continues by reviewing 103if the digital content is still being displayed. If the content is notstill being displayed, the method continues back at diamond 101 toreview if digital content is being displayed. If the digital content isstill being displayed, the method continues to review until either themode is enabled or until the digital content is no longer beingdisplayed. Once the mode is enabled (or if it was already enabled), themethod continues by determining either 104 a if a portion of the digitalcontent has been selected or 104 b if a create command has beenperformed. As described herein, selection of a portion of the digitalcontent may include selecting/highlighting text and/or images, selectingan audio or video file/clip, or some other suitable selection of aportion of the digital content. As was also described, the createcommand may include selecting a create button (such as is shown in FIG.3e , where the confirm selection button is selected to create a flashcard), selecting a create context menu option, performing a creategesture, or some other suitable action. The create command may behard-coded, user-configurable, or some combination thereof (e.g., wherea default create command(s) can be used but a user-selected createcommand(s) can also be used). Further, the create command may beperformed before or after the selection of the portion of digitalcontent, depending upon the configuration of the flash card mode. Ifneither a portion of digital content has been selected nor a createcommand has been performed, the method continues to review 103 if thedigital content is still being presented/displayed and 102 if the flashcard mode is still enabled.

Once a portion of digital content has been selected or a create commandhas been performed, the method continues to review if the other of thosetwo has occurred. For example, if at 104 a, a portion of digital contenthas been selected, the method continues by determining 105 a if a createcommand has been performed. Alternatively, if at 104 b, the createcommand is performed before a portion of the digital content has beenselected, the method continues by determining 105 b if a portion of thedigital content has been selected. The review continues until a portionof the digital content has been selected and a create command has beenperformed to create 106 a digital flash card. As variously describedherein, the digital flash card created has at least two virtual sides,where a first side of the flash card identifies the location of theselected portion of digital content (e.g., using a link to thelocation). The location may be identified in any number of suitableways, such as with a CFI, as described herein.

Note that, in some instances, if a portion of the digital content isselected at 104 a and then that content is unselected prior toperforming a create command at 105 a, the method continues at 104 b witha create command having been performed. In other words, in someinstances, the portion of digital content may have to remain selectedwhile performing a create command to create a digital flash card 106.Further note that, in some instances, if a create command has beenperformed at 104 b and then the create command is canceled (or otherwisedeactivated) prior to selecting a portion of the digital content at 105a, the method continues at 104 a with a portion of the digital contenthaving been selected. In other words, in some instances, the createcommand may have to remain active while selecting a portion of thedigital content to create a digital flash card 106.

After a digital flash card has been created 106, the method continues toreview 107 for input until the flash card mode has been exited.Additional input may include entering in content for a second side(and/or any additional sides) of the flash card (such as is shown inFIGS. 3f-g ), editing the linked-to content on the first side of theflash card, adding additional linked-to content on any side of the flashcard, saving the flash card, deleting the flash card, or any othersuitable input as will be apparent in light of this disclosure. Exampleactions that may exit the flash card mode may include saving or deletingthe created flash card, tapping or selecting in an area of the screenthat is away from the created flash card, or hitting the home or powerbutton of the computing device, just to name a few examples.

Numerous variations and embodiments will be apparent in light of thisdisclosure. One example embodiment of the present invention provides anelectronic device including a display for presenting digital content toa user and a user interface including a flash card mode. The flash cardmode is configured to create a digital flash card having at least twovirtual sides in response to user input including selecting a portion ofthe digital content and performing a create command, wherein a firstside of the digital flash card identifies the location of the selectedportion of digital content. In some cases, the location of the selectedportion of digital content is identified by a canonical fragmentidentifier (CFI). In some cases, the location of the selected portion ofdigital content is identified by a beginning canonical fragmentidentifier (CFI) and an ending CFI. In some cases, the digital contentis an electronic book (eBook). In some cases, the digital flash card hasa question-answer construct, wherein one side of the flash cardrepresents a question and another side represents an answer. In somesuch cases, the answer is user-generated content and the question isbased on the selected portion of digital content. In some cases, theflash card mode is configured to allow the user to enter text and/orselect an additional portion of the digital content for a second side ofthe digital flash card. In some cases, the create command includes abutton selection, a selection from a drop down menu, and/or a gesture.In some cases, one or more created flash cards are shareable and/orsellable. In some cases, one or more previously created flash cards areaccessible and/or buyable by the user. In some such cases, prior toallowing the one or more previously created flash cards to be accessedand/or bought by the user, the flash card mode is configured to performat least one of: allow the user to access and/or buy the flash cards ifall digital content identified in the flash card set is freelyaccessible by the user; prompt the user to buy and/or rent the digitalcontent sources containing the identified content if any digital contentidentified in the flash card set is not freely accessible by the user;and/or prompt the user to buy and/or rent the identified content if anydigital content identified in the flash card set is not freelyaccessible by the user.

Another example embodiment of the present invention provides a computerprogram product comprising a plurality of instructions non-transientlyencoded thereon that when executed by one or more processors cause aprocess to be carried out. The computer program product may include oneor more computer readable mediums such as, for example, a hard drive,compact disk, memory stick, server, cache memory, register memory,random access memory, read only memory, flash memory, or any suitablenon-transitory memory that is encoded with instructions that can beexecuted by one or more processors, or a plurality or combination ofsuch memories. In this example embodiment, the process is configured tocreate a digital flash card having at least two virtual sides inresponse to user input including selecting a portion of digital contentand performing a create command, and identify the location of theselected portion of digital content for a first side of the digitalflash card. In some cases, the location of the selected portion ofdigital content is identified by a canonical fragment identifier (CFI).In some cases, the location of the selected portion of digital contentis identified by a beginning canonical fragment identifier (CFI) and anending CFI. In some cases, the digital flash card has a question-answerconstruct, wherein one side of the flash card represents a question andanother side represents an answer, wherein the answer is user-generatedcontent and the question is based on the selected portion of digitalcontent. In some cases, the process is configured to allow the user toenter text and/or select an additional portion of the digital contentfor a second side of the digital flash card. In some cases, the createcommand includes a button selection, a selection from a drop down menu,and/or a gesture. In some cases, one or more created flash cards areshareable and/or sellable. In some cases, one or more previously createdflash cards are accessible and/or buyable by the user. In some suchcases, prior to allowing the one or more previously created flash cardsto be accessed and/or bought by the user, the process includes at leastone of: allow the user to access and/or buy the flash cards if alldigital content identified in the flash card set is freely accessible bythe user; prompt the user to buy and/or rent the digital content sourcescontaining the identified content if any digital content identified inthe flash card set is not freely accessible by the user; and/or promptthe user to buy and/or rent the identified content if any digitalcontent identified in the flash card set is not freely accessible by theuser.

The foregoing description of the embodiments of the present disclosurehave been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. Itis not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to theprecise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possiblein light of this disclosure. It is intended that the scope of thepresent invention be limited not by this detailed description, butrather by the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for controlling access to flash cards,the method comprising: causing simultaneous display of (i) a firstoption to access first one or more flash cards that are accessiblewithout authorization to access digital content that includes answers toone or more questions displayed on the first one or more flash cards,and (ii) a second option to access second one or more flash cards thatare pre-viewable, but not fully accessible, without authorization toaccess the digital content, the digital content being stored separatelyfrom the first and second one or more flash cards; in response to aselection of the second option, causing display of a flash card of thesecond one or more flash cards, the displayed flash card including atleast a first virtual side and a second virtual side, the first virtualside displaying a question, wherein an answer to the question isincluded in the digital content that is stored separately from the firstand second one or more flash cards; in response to user access to thedigital content not being authorized, causing display of, on the secondvirtual side of the displayed flash card, an option to gain access to atleast a portion of the digital content that includes the answer to thequestion; and in response to the option to gain access being selectedfrom the second virtual side of the displayed flash card, authorizinguser access to at least the portion of the digital content that includesthe answer to the question.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the secondvirtual side of the displayed flash card includes a canonical fragmentidentifier that identifies a section of the digital content.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, further comprising, in response to user access to thedigital content being authorized, retrieving the answer to the questionfrom the section of the digital content using the canonical fragmentidentifier, and causing display of, on the second virtual side, theretrieved answer to the question.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein theoption to gain access to at least a portion of the digital contentincludes an option to rent the digital content for a limited time. 5.The method of claim 1, wherein the option to gain access to at least aportion of the digital content includes an option to purchase thedigital content.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the digital contentincludes protection from copying.
 7. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising providing a menu upon receiving a user selection of the firstone or more flash cards or the second one or more flash cards, whereinthe menu includes an option to share the selected first one or moreflash cards or the selected second one or more flash cards with anotheruser.
 8. A computer program product including one or more non-transitorymachine-readable mediums encoded with instructions that when executed byone or more processors cause a process to be carried out for controllingaccess to flash cards, the process comprising: causing simultaneousdisplay of (i) a first option to access first one or more flash cardsthat are accessible without authorization to access digital content thatincludes answers to one or more questions displayed on the first one ormore flash cards, and (ii) a second option to access second one or moreflash cards that are pre-viewable, but not fully accessible, withoutauthorization to access the digital content, the digital content beingstored separately from the first and second one or more flash cards; inresponse to a selection of the second option, causing display of a flashcard of the second one or more flash cards, the displayed flash cardincluding at least a first virtual side and a second virtual side, thefirst virtual side displaying a question, wherein an answer to thequestion is included in the digital content that is stored separatelyfrom the first and second one or more flash cards; in response to useraccess to the digital content not being authorized, causing display of,on the second virtual side of the displayed flash card, an option togain access to at least a portion of the digital content that includesthe answer to the question; and in response to the option to gain accessbeing selected from the second virtual side of the displayed flash card,authorizing user access to at least the portion of the digital contentthat includes the answer to the question.
 9. The computer programproduct of claim 8, wherein the second virtual side of the displayedflash card includes a canonical fragment identifier that identifies asection of the digital content.
 10. The computer program product ofclaim 9, wherein the process further comprises, in response to useraccess to the digital content being authorized, retrieving the answer tothe question from the section of the digital content using the canonicalfragment identifier, and causing display of, on the second virtual side,the retrieved answer to the question.
 11. The computer program productof claim 8, wherein the option to gain access to at least a portion ofthe digital content includes an option to rent the digital content for alimited time.
 12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein theoption to gain access to at least a portion of the digital contentincludes an option to purchase the digital content.
 13. The computerprogram product of claim 8, wherein the digital content is from anelectronic book.
 14. The computer program product of claim 8, whereinthe process further comprises providing a menu upon receiving a userselection of the first one or more flash cards or the second one or moreflash cards, wherein the menu includes an option to share the selectedfirst one or more flash cards or the selected second one or more flashcards with another user.
 15. A computer program product including one ormore non-transitory machine-readable mediums encoded with instructionsthat when executed by one or more processors cause a process to becarried out for controlling access to flash cards, the processcomprising: in response to user input including selecting a portion ofdigital content and performing a create command, create a flash cardhaving at least two virtual sides, the portion of digital content havinga location within the digital content; cause simultaneous display of (1)a link to the location of the selected portion of digital content and(2) a prompt that prompts user to enter a question related to theselected portion of digital content, the link being visually associatedwith a first virtual side of the flash card, and the question beingvisually associated with a second virtual side of the flash card. 16.The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the location of theselected portion of digital content is identified by a beginningcanonical fragment identifier (CFI) and an ending CFI.
 17. The computerprogram product of claim 15, wherein the flash card is shareable and/orsellable.
 18. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein theflash card is a first flash card and the digital content is a firstdigital content, the process further comprising: causing simultaneousdisplay of (i) a first option to access a second flash card that isaccessible without authorization to access second digital content thatincludes an answer to a question displayed on the second flash card, and(ii) a second option to access a third flash card that is pre-viewable,but not fully accessible, without authorization to access the seconddigital content, the second digital content being stored separately fromthe second and third flash cards.
 19. The computer program product ofclaim 18, the process further comprising: in response to a selection ofthe second option, causing display of the third flash card, the thirdflash card including at least a first virtual side and a second virtualside, the first virtual side displaying a question, wherein an answer tothe question is included in the second digital content.
 20. The computerprogram product of claim 19, the process further comprising: in responseto user access to the second digital content not being authorized,causing display of, on the second virtual side of the third flash card,an option to gain access to at least a portion of the second digitalcontent that includes the answer to the question; and in response to theoption to gain access being selected from the second virtual side of thethird flash card, authorizing user access to at least the portion of thesecond digital content that includes the answer to the question.